Verse of the Day – One Body and One Spirit
Morning Offering – The Catholic Church is One Body with Many Members
“Just as in one man there is one soul and one body, yet many members; even so the Catholic Church is one body, having many members. The soul that quickens this body is the Holy Spirit; and therefore in the Creed after confessing our belief in the Holy Spirit, we are bid to believe in the Holy Catholic Church.”
— St. Thomas Aquinas
//Catholic Company//
Meditation of the Day – Christ is True God and True Man
“Christ is the second person of the Blessed Trinity, true God and true man, eternally united with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Just as there can be no separation within Christ’s human nature, so there can be none within His divine nature. Just as we cannot separate Christ’s body from His blood, or His soul from His body and blood, so we cannot separate Christ from the other persons in the Trinity. Time after time, we hear the priest pray to the Father at the end of the opening prayer of the Mass: We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.”— Vinney Flynn, p. 25
Minute Meditation – I Found God in You
We are all, whether we realize it or not, living symbols of the presence of God in the world. By who we are and how we act we can either build up or tear down the kingdom of God. God has chosen to act through us humans, first through God’s son, Jesus Christ, and then through all the members of Christ’s Mystical Body. That God is alive and well is most evident in those who live through, with and in God. No greater compliment could be given a man or a woman than that someone should say, “I found God in you.”
— from the book Song of the Sparrow: New Poems and Meditations by Murray Bodo, OFM
//Franciscan Media//
Meditation of the Day – The Vow of Chastity is Easily Lost
“The vow of chastity includes purity of body and soul; this is easily lost … This great treasure is deposited in a castle, which has many portals and openings, and if these are not well guarded and defended, the treasure is without security. My daughter, in order to preserve perfectly this vow, it is necessary to make an inviolable pact with thy senses, not to use them, except for what is according to the dictates of reason and for the glory of the Creator. After once the senses are mortified, it will be easy to overcome thy enemies, for only through them can they conquer thee; for no thoughts can recur, or be awakened to activity, unless fomented and excited by the images and impressions admitted through the exterior senses.”— Ven. Mary of Agreda, p. 86
//The Catholic Company//
Seeking God in Suffering – Temporary Tenting Adventure
Temporary Tenting Adventure
DAY 23 | 2 Corinthians 5:1-5
We know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven. . . . —2 Corinthians 5:1
Generally the closest we come to realizing our human mortality is when we see the earthly remains of someone who has passed on to eternity.
The apostle Paul offers a fitting perspective on this passing. He points out that this life and body are temporary, and our whole being yearns for its permanent dwelling in heaven. When believers in Christ take their last breath, they are swallowed up by life and not death. Our camping adventure in these earthly tents is over, and we move into a new place that Jesus has prepared for us (John 14:2).
Life in these tents can be rich and full as God grants us joy in worship, relationships, work, and witness. But this is just a foretaste of the glory that awaits us, that the Spirit of God guarantees for our future.
My mother never much liked camping, and her earthly tent was often wracked with pain. As we gathered around her bedside in the days and hours before she passed away, we grieved for us but rejoiced for her. She would soon be taking up residence with God!
When we are faced with our own mortality, we naturally desire to stay with the people we love in this familiar world. But as Christians, we do not grieve as people without hope, for we believe the best is yet to come!
Lord, some of our tents are ripping at the seams and caving in. Prepare us for when you call us to be with you forever. Comfort us with that hope. Amen.
//Reframe Ministries//
Seeking God in Suffering – Help Me Believe!
Help Me Believe!
DAY 9 | Mark 9:14-29
“Everything is possible for one who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” —Mark 9:23-24
This is both a beautiful and a dangerous story about Jesus casting out a demon. Jesus both challenges the boy’s father to believe in him, and Jesus rebukes his disciples for not believing enough.
The beauty of the story is that Jesus demonstrated his power over demonic influence and sickness to heal someone. We believe the same power of Christ lives in us! The danger with this story, though, is that some people interpret it to say that when a person is not healed of a serious illness, they do not have enough faith. But that is not the truth.
We believe that God is all-powerful. We believe that Jesus still does miraculous healings. We also believe that—on this side of eternity—sickness can lead to physical death. Jesus did not heal everyone while he walked the earth; Jesus doesn’t heal everyone today. But Jesus does promise eternal life for all who believe in his name (John 3:16). This is the truth.
My daughter got a tattoo that says “Believe” when both her father and I were battling cancer at the same time. Rather than succumb to worry, she chose to believe that God was in control, no matter the outcome. Sometimes when our circumstances feel overwhelming, our prayer can simply be “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”
Jesus, we believe in your power to heal both our souls and our bodies. We trust that no matter what happens to our bodies, our souls are secure in you forever. Thank you. Amen.
//Reframe Ministries//
Saint of the Day – March 23rd – Saint Rafqa (Rebecca)
St. Rafqa / Rafka (Arabic for Rebecca) (1832–1914) was born in Himlaya, a Maronite village in the Lebanese mountains. She was an only child, and her mother died when she was seven. After her father’s remarriage there was much family discord as to whom Rafqa should marry. Not wanting to wed any of the men in question, she turned to God and entered religious life at the age of 21.
Rebecca had a great devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary which she learned from her mother. She studied and served as a teacher for many years, but, after witnessing and surviving a massacre of Christians, she decided at the age of 39 to become a cloistered contemplative nun living under a strict rule in a monastery. Here, Rafqa prayed earnestly that she might share in the sufferings of Christ. Her prayers were heard almost immediately. She became blind and paralyzed, and over the course of 30 years she struggled with deteriorating health and incredible pain. All of her sufferings she united to the sufferings of Christ without complaint.
Under obedience to her superior Rebecca worked on an autobiography near the end of her life. She died at the age of 82, and her grave is credited with many miracles. St. Rafqa is a Catholic Maronite saint canonized by Pope St. John Paul II in 2001. She is the patron of sick people, bodily ills, and loss of parents. Her feast day is March 23rd.
//Franciscan Media//
Minute Meditation – Others Can Show Us Our Best Selves
“Do you want to be healed?…Then stand up, pick up your mat and walk!” —John 5:7, 9
In John’s Gospel we see an image of fruitful and healing water, fittingly called Bethesda or “house of mercy.” We have the healing waters available and bubbling, a house of mercy for sure, but a man who is right there not making use of it! He is paralyzed as much in spirit as in his body. This is the real “sin” and tragedy that he must be healed of. He is playing the victim: “I have no one to plunge me into the pool. By the time I get there someone else has always beaten me to it.” And he has been saying this for thirty-eight years! So Jesus orders him up, and tells him to pick up his mat and walk for himself. Jesus mirrors his best self for the man, he empowers him, and gives him back his own power, he “images” him, he gives the man back to himself by giving him His self. This is the way it has to happen, because we all begin to see ourselves as other people see us—for good and for ill. With Jesus, it is always for good, but such perfect mirroring also carries further relationship and responsibilities with it. He warns the man not to turn back to his paralysis, “or something worse will overtake you.” This “regressive restoration of the old persona” is a very common pattern when we are sent out into new and risky worlds when we have to take responsibility for ourselves, when we must courageously face our own lives and stand on our own courageous feet. There are few honest guides, like Jesus, at this point. Most will tell you to “take good care of yourself” and pad your false self. Jesus never does that. We need healing images and courageous people to image us at our best. Nothing else will invite us into the flowing waters from the temple and the always bubbling pool of divine mercy. Many never take the risk, and remain spiritual infants even much beyond “thirty-eight years.”
“Healing God, give me the courage to move forward, and help me to see that my deepest sin might be my unwillingness to keep growing.”
— from the book Wondrous Encounters: Scriptures for Lent
by Richard Rohr, OFM
//Franciscan Media//
Sermon Notes – Stump the Chump
“Stump the Chump“
Father Peter Fitzgibbons
February 13-14, 2021
Gospel: Mark 1: 40-45
On occasion, as I go about my day, I have people come up and say, “Father, may I ask you a question?” Sure! Sometimes, people have very good questions. Now, these questions generally fall into one of two categories. The first category includes the faithful who are seeking understanding. This happened on Tuesday when someone asked me, “Father, why do we call you father? I never really knew why.” The first good reason is my mother told me to, and if you don’t obey her, you know what happens. The second reason is scriptural. Paul said in his epistle: “I am your spiritual father. I beget you in Christ. I baptized you and gave you spiritual life.” Then, there is this other group of people who try to see if I’m the village idiot. I’m not, but I qualify for the top ten. I call this game “stump the chump.” “Father, where does it say in scripture that we are supposed to kneel?” Well, that’s easy enough… Matthew 27, Psalm 95, Romans 14, and Revelation just to name a few. I mean, come on! Really? I’m not the brightest bulb on the circuit, but that’s an easy one. They are trying to get me to prove that Catholicism is wrong. That or try to convert me. I already know I’m not going to convince them to become Catholic. “Have you ever heard about the precious blood?” You know…I believe I have. I stayed awake that day at seminary. These are all “gotcha questions.
How do you tell people about Christ? The best way to evangelize is not by giving someone a bunch of information. They could get that online or look in the Catechism of the Catholic Church…it’s all in there. So, how do you tell people about Christ? Do we tell them to read the book? Well, the book doesn’t contain everything about Jesus Christ. The book is a “what” not a “Who.” But, we can pass on the “Who” to people by telling them what Jesus has done for us. If giving people a book brought people to Christ, we could give everyone a copy of the Catechism and fill the church with converts. But that doesn’t happen. If that worked, we could all read a medical book and be the epitome of health. We have to tell people what’s in the book and bring it to real life. We have to tell them about God’s grace and what He has done in our lives. Today’s gospel shows us how to evangelize. Jesus cured that leper from a death sentence. He went away and could not stop telling people how Jesus had restored his life. Like the leper, we also have to tell people what God has done for us.
We see proof of God’s love so often that sometimes we become immune to it and ungrateful. Each time you go to Mass, you receive the Most Precious Body and Blood just like the apostles did at the Last Supper. You can come to church during the day and speak to our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament as one person speaks to another. But, because we have become so accustomed to the gift of His love, we forget to be thankful. I’m thankful for a lot of things. I’m thankful for indoor plumbing. I’m thankful for clean clothes. I’m thankful that McDonalds is open 24-7. I’m thankful about not having to go outside in a rain storm to take a shower. That’s nice and a big change. I’m thankful for many things even those that are unpleasant like the COVID test. I get it every week, so I don’t want to hear any whining. “Oh! That’s terrible!” Well, thank God we have that test. “But why, Father?” We could have the Chinese test instead. Come on! We are also grateful for the geniuses who have worked tirelessly night and day to develop these tests and vaccines so that we can maintain our health and delay what will eventually come.
God has given us our life, and when we lose it by sin, He gives it back to us. This is how we tell people about the truth and meaning of our faith. Not in an obnoxious way, but by telling them what the Lord has done in our lives and the great gift He has given us…the gift of Himself. Not that we deserve it, but because He loves us. He brought me back to life through my baptism. He feeds me the Precious Body and Blood in Holy Communion. When my soul is dead with sin, and I may lose Heaven if those sins are not forgiven, He gives my life back to me through the Sacrament of Penance. He forgives and He forgets. My soul is washed in His blood.
The Blessed Mother was the first to be washed in His blood. She was standing beneath the cross and was spattered with it. When they took Him down from the cross and laid Him on her lap, she was covered with His blood. Once you are dead, your blood stops coagulating. So, Mary was covered with the blood of Christ. “Why do you honor Mary?” She was the first human being to be covered in the Precious Blood. She was also the first to receive a miracle. Remember the wedding at Cana? That was a direct intercession of God. “Son, they have no more wine.” Boom. And, there was wine.
This is how we tell people about our faith. We don’t use obnoxious evangelization techniques when we talk to them. We just tell them about what God has done for us. But, we keep trying to reinvent the wheel. If we do it differently, will things be better? No. We do what works. What happened when God performed His miracles? The recipients of those miracles told others. And, what happened? Look at the last line in today’s Gospel. Jesus went to deserted places, but people kept coming to Him from all sides.
How will you apply this message to your life? Are you grateful for His love or have you become immune to it? Will you tell others what God has done in your life?
You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to https://annunciationcatholicalbemarle.com/ and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes. From a cell phone, click on “Blog” then “Menu” and then “Categories” (located at the end of the page). There is also a search box if you are looking for a specific topic.